Common Co-Occurring Psychological Disorders

Psychological disorders are major risk factors for developing an addiction. When you come to treatment at Crestview Recovery, you’re going to be in the hands of a staff that can help. We’ll diagnose you to see if you have any underlying mental illnesses that may be playing a role in your substance abuse problem. First, we’ll help you understand how your mental illness may have led you to drinking or using drugs.

Understanding Psychological Disorders

If you’re like most of the people in the United States, you didn’t receive a proper education about mental health. Most mental illnesses develop between the ages of 14 and 24, which is typically when you’re learning about physical health. While your physical health is extremely important and can help reduce symptoms of mental illness, there’s more to understand. Not knowing what the symptoms of mental illness look like, can be very scary and confusing if you suddenly start developing them.

Most people keep their mental illness symptoms to themselves in fear of judgment from others in their lives. Different symptoms of mental illnesses can make you not want to leave the house, while others manifest in anger. Some mental illnesses can make you seem as though you’re going to crazy, and without knowing what to do, it’s a problem. Sometimes the easiest solution seems to drink or use drugs to get a certain feeling.

The most common psychological disorders associated with addiction include:

How Psychological Disorders turn Into an Addiction

Our brains respond to actions that help make us feel better by telling us to repeat them. This is context-dependent memory, which is vital for our survival. For example, when we get hungry, we know to eat, and when we’re thirsty, we drink. The problem is that this starts to happen when we’re trying to get rid of certain thoughts or emotions. Each time you drink or use drugs to deal with mental illness, you become more dependent upon your substance of choice.

Eventually, there comes a point where you lose control of making the choice to use or drink when you’re feeling anxious or depressed. Your brain begins to crave the alcohol or drugs to make you feel better. Eventually, your symptoms will get worse due to the chemical changes from the substances themselves. This results in co-occurring disorders, which require treatment alongside your addiction.

Treating Addiction and Psychological Disorders Separately

Here at Crestview Recovery, we understand the importance of treating addiction and mental illness together. While you’re in drug and alcohol addiction treatment, we’ll help you learn how to stay sober one day at a time. More importantly, we’re going to help you learn how to live with your symptoms of mental illness. Not only will you be able to live with the symptoms, but you’ll learn how to deal with them in a much healthier way.

Millions of people around the world have different forms of mental illness and are still able to lead incredible lives. Through our addiction treatment programs, you’ll learn how to regain control of your life rather than allowing your brain to control you. Through various types of therapy that heal your mind and change your behaviors, you’ll begin to see results. Before you leave treatment, you’ll start to see that there is hope for you to live a much happier, healthier life.

Crestview Recovery provides you with a beautiful setting in Portland, Oregon. In addition, we work with insurance providers to make recovery possible for more people. Find out more about how we can help you overcome your addiction by calling us today at 866-262-0531.